Sparkie back on the job after going missing in stolen ute for two days

Wednesday, 16 March 2022

Lydia Stewart and her dog Sparkie were reunited after the black border collie huntaway-cross was caught up in a cross-country vehicle theft.

Sparkie the dog “wagged her tail off” when she was reunited with owner Lydia Stewart after getting caught up in a crime spree that spanned hundreds of kilometres across the South Island.

Lydia Stewart was helping trim trees at her parents’ St Martins Rd property in Christchurch about 12.30pm on Saturday when a man jumped into her ute parked in the driveway and took off – with Sparkie and $40,000 worth of tools inside.

Stewart said her heart “sunk” when she realised Sparkie was in the back of the ute as she heard it start up then pull out of the driveway.

She struggled to sleep at night, worried about the safety of her “very friendly, well-mannered and very well-behaved” dog.

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Lydia Stewart says she was “overwhelmed and overjoyed” when she heard her dog Sparkie had been found.

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“I … thought I might not see her again,” she said.

The 2.5-year-old black border collie huntaway-cross was a “wee tender soul”.

“Things are replaceable, but she isn’t,” she said.

Christchurch builder Lydia Stewart says Sparkie was dehydrated and hungry but “wagged her tail off” when they were reunited on Monday.

“You’ve got a special bond that … you don’t really get with humans. They’re just so loyal.”

The stolen ute was later involved in a burglary at petrol station Gas Lewis Pass in Springs Junction, more than 210 kilometres away.

Gas Lewis Pass owner Peter Gibbs called Stewart while she was having lunch with her sisters on Monday to tell her Sparkie had been found.

Sparkie was in a ute stolen from a Christchurch driveway on Saturday morning and was found in Murchison on Monday.

“I was overwhelmed and overjoyed and was so excited,” she said.

A police officer had noticed the ute parked on the side of State Highway 6 in the remote Owen River area in Murchison.

Sparkie was “shaken up” and she couldn’t tell whether she had been fed or given any water, but “almost wagged her tail off” with excitement when they were reunited on Monday.

The dog had a small cut above her eye and was dehydrated and hungry, “but she’s always hungry”, Stewart said.

Stewart always took Sparkie to work with her and went running together in the Port Hills – and that wouldn’t change, she said – although she would “definitely be more cautious”.

On Wednesday morning, she received a call from the police officer in charge of the case who said they had identified a potential suspect, she said.

A police spokeswoman told Stuff on Wednesday no arrests had been made and the stolen tools had not been found.

The ute, which Stewart was borrowing from her brother while hers was being repaired, was completely written off, Stewart said.

Luckily, both Stewart and her brother had insurance, but the only equipment she had for the time being was her sledgehammer which was left behind at the Springs Junction petrol station when it was broken into on Saturday night.

Stewart said she was overwhelmed with the support she had received from friends, family and strangers, offering her tools, support, and even vehicles.

“It’s been amazing… I’ll definitely pass it forward,” she said.